Why Are Some ForeverStrong Workouts Harder Than Others?

ForeverStrong Training Method

As we end week 4 of Inner Armour. I thought I’d share a little nugget about the method behind the madness.

Clients often mention to me that they notice that some workouts are harder than others. During Attain Super Stamina Cycle it was the “C” Day, right?

Some, think that’s a mistake. Others, are afraid to tell me that they thought the workout was easy, because assume think I’ll just make it harder.

Amatuer trainers try to impress their clients with gut wrenching workouts. When I used to work in a box gym, they would laugh about how sore they made their clients.

Any ordinary person can design a workout that smokes you after one week. It takes knowledge of exercise science to design a program that gets sustainable results – and gives you energy and wellbeing afterwards.

That’s why we have 8-week periodized training cycles.

Why Periodization

The Purpose of periodization is to force your body to adapt and improve as fast as possible over a few short weeks without the risk of overtraining.

I design the programs using the ‘HMLM’ formula. Because the greatest amount of adaptation without any risk happens in the “M” zone

To accomplish progressive overload, we increase the challenge each week. More reps, more time under tension, less rest, more weight etc.

The problem with linear progression is, if you keep making every workout “feel” harder, you’ll hit the wall. We hit a physiological or psychological barrier. Some people call this overtraining. So, we vary the load or intensity with each workout. Our A, B, C, D workout days each have a slightly different “feel” some “feel” easier or harder than others. Did today or yesterday’s workout feel easier or harder than Friday’s or Saturday’s? This is on purpose.

There are many ways to design a program with variable intensity. The primary way we incorporate this into the program is through a pattern of HMLM. Heavy Workout, Medium Workout, Light Workout, Medium Workout. We keep our clients in the medium zone more than heavy or light, as this is where the most adaptation occurs without risk.

How can you tweak this strategy for best results:

If you are Weight Lifting 2x a week: make your weight training feel harder on one session and medium on the other. Are you doing cardio in addition? then vary your cardio sessions with the HMLM pattern.

If you are Weight Lifting 3x a week: don’t make every session all-out. It’s okay to leave something in the tank for the next workout. One out of every four weight lifting workouts should be intense. Two out of of four should feel just right. One out of four should feel light.

If you’re supposed to a back-to-back workout, but you prefer to repeat the prior days workout: reduce your intensity by either lifting lighter weights, or dropping down to a lower rep option.

Whether you are currently training at ForeverStrong, or keeping up on your own, this strategy will ensure that your program build you up, instead of beating you down!

Our Personal Trainers have helped hundreds of people in Howard County and the surrounding areas lose weight, tone up, and become stronger. Our neighbors in Highland, Clarksville, Columbia, Burtonsville, Olney, Ashton and Silver Spring love their personalized training program. Unlike group fitness classes, each client receives a custom program. We’d love to help you too. Call us at 301-452-5547 or email info@trainforeverstrong.com to see for yourself. Mention this article for a free session!

Editors Note: A version of this post was originally shared in Kelly’s ForeverStrong Inner Circle and adapted for a broader audience.